Club Homepage Forums Classified Ads Buy & Sell - Everything But Airplanes Some corrosion inside 152 Aerobat wings

I may have led you to believe that we reskinned the wings due to corrosion! We didn't! There was damage to the leading edge of both wings. In order to properly rivet the new leading edges, the upper skins had to be removed to access the lines of rivets for bucking. These skins were nearly solid white inside from surface corrosion. Although we could have removed the corrosion and alodined and zinc chromated the old skins, it would have been very labor intensive. We chose new skins. It is important that you know that had we reused the old skins, They would have been just as sound as the new skins. We experimented on a small area to see how much material would be removed during complete removal of all corrosion. The new skins measured with a micrometer were .032" thick. The small area of the experiment on the old skins after aggresive mechanical corrosion removal and alodine treatment measured ..... .032" thick. I have since proven there is no difference in strength between properly treated old aluminum, and new, as long as no measureable amount of material is removed, as above! The old skins were kept and used for various other smaller projects. Knowing where to look for serious corrosion issues is an important part of any inspection, but is not very likely to turn up a deal breaker on any well kept aircraft. From your description (hard to see through a computer monitor) what your prospective purchase has is cosmetic in nature, and doesn't weaken the structure one little bit! It is still +6g -3g certified!

Many people use Corrosion-X and other products and believe it helps. I personally do not use the stuff, as I don't want to be constantly cleaning it up as it weeps through lap joints in the skins. When it finally quits weeping, it's time to retreat, so cleaning up after it becomes a fact of life. It also leaves a sticky residue inside, which accumalates all manner of dirt, debris, and bugs, and I don't see how that solves any corrosion issues, other than hiding it. Each to his own!



You should have a pre-buy (you pay) or annual inspection done (negotiate shared costs, but no repairs) before purchase, using YOUR mechanic of choice, and not the one that signed off the previous annual! Listen to your mechanic. That's what you pay him for!